From the small town of Laurel, Mississippi, Erin Napier is serving major design inspiration. Rather than taking the form of farmhouse decor or cozy patterns, this interior design idea is found in an unsuspecting form: a candle.
The HGTV Home Town host took to Instagram to share her favorite home smells, and we're obsessed. Not only do we love the scents she chose, but they also provide important lessons on how to fill your home with fragrance and the best candles.
For her chosen home fragrance, Erin Napier has a lot to say. 'When people walk into our house they almost always say "oh my gosh it smells so GOOD in here! That's the first impression. And it makes me really happy.,' writes Erin on her Instagram story. She continues, 'I'm funny about fragrance. It's seasonal for me. If you wanna talk about what candles I'm burning this month (besides Tudor - Tudor is my forever winter favorite)...Keep goin.'
She goes on to list her two other January favorite candles, both available at her brand, Laurel Mercantile. First, is Buttermilk Biscuits, which Erin says, 'smells like actual biscuits baking, has a buttery and salty scent you can just about taste.' She says the notes are 'divine' and 'warm.'
Next up is her Euclid Avenue Candle. Erin mentions that it 'smells like the optimism of a new year' with 'wintry citrus' and 'a little aromatic, that's the musk, but zippy and upbeat.' It's inspired by her hometown.
Many of Erin's fragrances are inspired by a place or a feeling. Choosing a signature scent for your house can truly transform the space to feel more cozy, inviting and connected to your style and personality. 'Wearing a certain perfume or fragrance can be an integral part of your personal style. Similarly, aroma can set the scene in your home,' says Tipper Lewis, Naturopathic Herbalist and aromatherapy expert at Neal's Yard Remedies.
She continues, 'It could be an essential oil blend that evokes happy memories of a special place, or you can create different fragrances to capture different moods.' By alternating fragrances that remind her of different parts of her life, Erin Napier has done exactly this.
Kamila Miller, Fragrance expert at Charles Farris agrees with Erin's method of choosing scents based on the seasons to make your home smell nice. She states: 'Fragrance can have an enormous effect on your mood. For instance, a floral fragrance evokes an atmosphere of cleanliness and sunny weather, which can be enormously uplifting during the dreary winter months.' She continues, 'For something more on the relaxing side, rich floral scents like jasmine or tuberose promote a deeper and more restful sleep.'
If you're interested in recreating Erin's method of using candles to layer fragrances in her home, Kamila has the perfect advice. She states: 'Burning candles for two hours in the morning is often enough to refresh your home for the entire day. If you’re worried about overwhelming the space, or if you’re sensitive to strong scents, the best place for a candle can often be a transitory space, such as an entryway or a hallway. The natural airflow will carry the fragrance throughout the whole home while also diffusing the scent itself.'
While we love Erin's candle recommendations, there are hundreds of other amazing, mood-boosting candles on the market. Here are just a few of our favorites.
Shop The Best Candles
A few candles can go a long way in making your home an oasis of welcoming fragrance. Take it from Erin Napier.
